Hinduism

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Hinduism

• The Teaching Company Hinduism sketchy notes
• Lecture One
• India Culture Religion Hinduism
• Homogeneity probably not Diversity YES!!!
  Pluralism
• Devotees to particular god e.g., Shiva, Vishnu
  not member of general religion
• Family of Religions
• Christians did not originally call themselves that

2

• Hinduism became a religion around 17th C as a
  system of doctrines
• Certainly NOT in a totally organized way
• Actually see belief in (a codified) God to be
  an obstruction
• Religion is not merely a department of life it
  is life, pervasive, foundational
• D.T. Suzuki We do not have an ideology we
  dance.

3

• Hinduism a complex of different and even
  contradictory things, ideas
• To bring Hinduism into the classroom, distorts
  it by way of codification
• No proselytizing impulse in Hinduism not
  seeking converts no need to codify
• India decidedly secular democracy not a
  theocracy

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Stages of Life Men Women

• Dharma duty, responsibility in life dictates
  four (4) stages for men three (3) stages for
  women
• Dharar the way life should be

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Men Four Stages of Life

• N.B., this is most common among Brahmins and
  upper caste members
• 1st stage student
• 2nd stage householder in ones 20
• 3rd stage forest dweller
• 4th stage sannyasin searcher

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Student Stage

• Receive ones sacred thread
• A custom among Brahmins, upper castes
• About age 12 13
• Serious study of Hinduism and its rituals

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Householder

• Early 20s
• Marriage
• Only stage shared by men and women
• Establish economic stability
• Reproduction with obligations (dharma) towards
  one children

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Forest Dweller

• As your children move on
• Find modest dwelling
• Maybe with spouse, maybe not
• Introspection, whats life all about?
• Beyond, family, beyond income, beyond social
  duties

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Sanyasa/Sanyasin

• Life of rigor austerity
• Depend on others for well being, beg even
• Deep search into self
• Enstasis/exstasis

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Womens Stages

• Not what used to be, becoming more like mens
  stages
• Women must be honored in Vedas, if women not
  present, even though they may not participate in
  rituals, rituals ineffective
• Women need not wait in lines for things
• Some parts of Inida, there are buses just for
  women

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Girlhood

• Not a student
• As girl, pure but inauspicious virginity focus,
  under fathers care/protection

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Houeholder -- Marriage

• At one time, early, early marriage
• 12 yrs old
• Arranged, often to much older man
• Focus is to make babies
• Bride under rule of mother-in-law
• Fewer arranged marriages, esp. in cities

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Widowhood

• A wifes duty is to husband first, last, always
• Sati the going wife
• Wife burned on funeral pyre of husband
• Not much any more 1987, 2002 cases

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Marriage

• Purpose is to reproduce
• Male producing rituals none for females
• Not romantic love falling in love
• Seen as stable alliance of families
• Seen as assurance of economic stability
• Girl ? Woman now impure but auspicious
• Menstruation and childbearing makes one impure
  but auspicious ? life producing

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Sati

• British outlawed in 18th C
• Gandhi opposed as well
• Widows wear white color of mourning in Hinduism
• Widows traditionally not to re-marry
• Shave head to be unattractive

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The Way of Action

• Samsara the cycle of re-birth, transmigration
  of souls, reincarnation
• Samsara fundamental problem of life the realm
  of suffering, sorrow, ennui, alienation, distance
  from Nirvana
• cycle of returning to life in forms not exactly
  conducive to pleasure -- suffering
• animal as well as human

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Moksha

• Moksha release from cycle of suffering
• Moksha too demanding for most Hindus
• Life will take care of itself
• Active pursuit of Moksha for another life
• Will reach another life simply living properly
  according to ones dharma duties, obligations
• Not one single path for release
• There are many paths to the mountain top.

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Three Traditional Paths

• Yoga yoke, discipline synonymous with marga
  (Trimarga 3 paths)
• Karma way of action
• Jnanana way of wisdom
• Bhakti way of devotion

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Four traditional goods of life

• Dharma duty, doing ones duty, living ones
  role take care of that, that is plenty good for
  one life
• Artha -- wealth and material possession
• Kama world of senses, pleasure
• Kama Sutra certainly pays great attention to
  dharma as source of pleasure living right

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Four traditional goods of life

• Moksha in order to achieve this, one must give
  up the other three, or grow beyond them.
• If not yet ready to give up other three, proper
  religious life means doing ones best to improve
  this life and other lives
• other lives??? My future lives or lives of
  those around me???

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Karma

• Karma action and its consequences
• Principle of justice
• Effects of ones actions return to agent
• Karma binds soul to cycle of endless existence
• Karma determines ones station in future
  existences
• Doing it right until you get it right

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Meritorious Karma

• Gained via rituals, festivals, pilgrimage
• Rituals daily prayers uttering deitys name
  ritual bathing applying markings of devotion
  burning incense a pleasing aroma to the gods

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Samskaras

• Sacraments basically
• Birth
• Initiation
• marriage
• death

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The Way of Wisdom

• Embodied in the Upanishads
• Revealed knowledge (sruti) share this status
  with the
• often called Vedanta seen as completion of
  Vedas the final revelation

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Sit down next to

• Upanishads literal meaning above
• Derived from guru to student teachings
• Wisdom of esoteric nature, gained only from one
  who was enlightened, wise

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Upanishads trivia

• How many are there?
• Some claim 200 300 quite a range
• Others claim there are 108 sacred number to
  Hindus/Buddhists
• English editions usually have only 13
• Not systematic
• Not internally consistent

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Two Central Upanishads themes

• 1) What is the essence of the human self?
• 2) What is the essence of ultimate reality?

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Human Essence

• Atman Sanskrit for soul
• Not satisfied with concept of breathing though
• Certainly not to be identified with body
• Not willing to identify human essence with mind,
  either
• We speak of ourselves as rational animals
• Upanishads see that as simplistic distinction

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Atman a turning inward

• Hinduism truth is within ourselves, not just
  beyond ourselves
• Enstasis standing within
• Tat tuam asi That (truth) too thou art

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Brahman looking beyond

• Literally that which makes great

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